Housing Choice Voucher Program (formerly Section 8)

The Loudoun County Department of Family Services (DFS) Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCV) provides rental assistance to low-income families, the elderly, and the disabled to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market through Federal funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The HCV program (also known as Section 8) is administered locally by Public Housing Agencies (PHAs).

Since housing assistance is provided directly to the landlord on behalf of the household, participants are able to find their own housing, including single-family homes, townhouses and apartments which must meet Housing Quality Standard for affordability and safety.

Once a family and a landlord sign a lease, the tenant family is responsible for a portion of their rent depending on their income, and the HCV program pays the remainder directly to the landlord.

To qualify for the HCV program the household income must not exceed 30 percent of the area median income.

The average HCV household usually pays a portion of rent and utilities not covered by the voucher which is approximately 30 to 40 percent of their monthly adjusted income.

For general information on the HCV program you may also visit the HUD web site.

Updates and Announcements

Effective November 1, 2018, Loudoun County Department of Family Services, Housing Choice Voucher Program will begin using the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD’s) new method to calculate the amount of money we will pay toward rent and utilities for each family in our Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program.

Under HUD’s new approach, the standard used to determine the maximum subsidy for a rental unit known as the payment standard, is based on rent estimates for each Zip Code. The new approach using the localized rent in each zip code is called a Small Area Fair Market Rent (SAFMR).

Small Area Fair Market Rents (SAFMRs) are HUD’s calculation of fair market rents for zip codes. Normally, HUD sets one fair market rent (FMR) for a large geographic region, resulting in a subsidy level that often does not match local rents. HUD’s use of large geographic areas to set FMRs makes it harder for families to rent outside low-rent neighborhoods. By utilizing zip codes as the basis for fair market rents, HUD hopes to provide tenants with greater ability to move into higher-opportunity neighborhoods with jobs, public transportation and good schools.

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Reasonable Accommodations

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states: No otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program, service or activity receiving federal financial assistance or under any program or activity conducted by any Executive agency or by the United States Postal Service (29 U.S.C. 794). This means that Section 504 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity that receives financial assistance from any federal agency, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as well as in programs conducted by federal agencies, including HUD.

A reasonable accommodation is a change, adaptation or modification to a policy, program, service or workplace, which will allow a qualified person with a disability to participate fully in a program, take advantage of a service, or perform a job. Reasonable accommodations may include, for example, changes which are necessary in order for the person with a disability to use and enjoy a dwelling, including public and common use spaces. For persons with disabilities, in some cases simply treating them exactly the same as others may not ensure that they have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling. Persons with disabilities may request a reasonable accommodation at any time, while participating in the Housing Choice Voucher Program, including during the application process.